Wild West Gold Slot Review & Free Play Demo - By Pragmatic Play

First Impression of Wild West Gold Slot 

The moment you load Wild West Gold, Pragmatic Play sweeps you into an attractive yet rough-looked-out world of cowboys and outlaws. The slot visuals carry all the spirit of a Western movie with dusty streets, wooden storefronts, and an immersive saloon-type soundtrack. Clinking piano keys and gunshots with the hushed murmurs of an audience create a modest setting, though one that is light-hearted. Thus, the atmosphere is cheery and free and clear when compared to the grittier tones of its apparent inspiration, Dead or Alive 2. Though the theme is riveting, the execution of it lacks part of the tension and excitement which might draw one in deeper into its world. Yet, for those who simply adore the subject matter of the Wild West and good old fashion slot machine action, there is an opportunity here to have some real fun in Wild West Gold.

Symbols and Payable

Wild West Gold features a 5×4 reel layout with 40 paylines, payable from left to right. Symbols are divided into three categories: low, medium, and high payouts, as the designs of said symbols will be seen to follow the old west theme. The lower-paying symbols of the game are classic card royals printed in bold Western font, in the shape of the lettering on saloon signs. Higher-paying elements include a revolver in a holster and a bag of gold coins, both paying out more when five-of-a-kind or four-of-a-kind are achieved.

There are multiple high-paying symbols represented by different Western characters, replete with personality. These include a sly working girl with a concealed knife, a sharpshooting female outlaw, a dangerous bearded bandit, and the ever-reliable sheriff with a piercing gaze. The sheriff emblem is one of the best paying, yielding 20 times the stake for five of a kind. Wild symbols, which occur only on reels 2, 3, and 4, add to the pay table. Each Wild has a multiplier of x2, x3, or x5 and adds their values together when appearing on the same winning line, which creates huge award potential.

Special Features: Sticky Wilds and Free Spins  

The free spins round is the main special feature here, accompanied by sticky Wilds. All that is required to trigger the bonus is the scatter symbol on reels 1, 3, and 5 in base game. This rewards eight free games, wherein all Wilds appearing on reels 2, 3, and 4 become sticky for the balance spins of the bonus. Sticky enough as that the Wild remains locked in place until the end of the bonus, thereby massively increasing the opportunities for generating a largish win.

This gets very exciting when sheriff’s badge overlays appear on any symbol except the scatter. Two or more badges landing simultaneously present gifts to the player in the form of extra free spins: 2 badges grant 4 extra spins and 5 badges may net up to 20 extra spins. At any moment, there is hope that otherwise lackluster bonus rounds will kick into something that makes it extend play and reward maximally as well.

Also, there is a “fail-safe” mechanism at Wild West Gold that reduces the negative effects of high volatility. If the bonus game ends up with less than 10x the triggering stake, then the slot guarantees a payback of at least 10x; this way, consolation for all player efforts wasted after a fruitless feature.

RTP, Volatility and Potential to Pay Back

Wild West Gold is volatile, scoring 5/5, which explains the presence of frequent long streaks of game activity without spins. It’s a game of great patience, as the base game is frequently laden with fairly low-value or dead spins. However, in this free spin round, a fully locked reel with two sticky Wilds and two multipliers can easily change everything around and give you a pretty cool pay. The theoretical RTP is as high as 96.51%, assuming the default setting is available at the casino. Here, pragmatic play allows operators to modify the RTP. This means that a player has to crosscheck the platform they have chosen to ensure it is favourable.

A maximum win of 6,750 times the stake is in place within the slot. This is a decent level compared to Dead or Alive 2 but not quite a spectacular figure since, as would be expected, Wild West Gold has something special to give those willing to take risks and enjoy big wins.

Strategies and Tips

Optimizing the Wild West Gold experience will require strategies aimed at equating volatility and potential. Because the setting has high variance, bankroll management is critical. Casual players will want to play at lower stakes in a move to stretch their sessions and build up a better chance of hitting those all-important Free Spins. The more adventurous will gamble big to win big but hopefully not for too long.

Understanding how Wild multipliers work is important. They can combine for exponential rewards, meaning that every spin, especially in Free Spins, could be a game-changer. Wild West Gold is patient-intensive, as most significant wins will likely happen during the bonus round rather than in the base game. Auto-spin is helpful to sheer through base game but a player should be alert for scatter landing and adjust the levels of betting accordingly.

Additional points to keep in mind are studies of RTP values that the casino you will gamble at. Nothing is wrong with a casino with an RTP at 96.51%, it is simply going to provide you with the best long-term chance to win. Demo play is also available and can be helpful in learning about how a game goes before you start playing for real money.

Conclusion

Wild West Gold is a solid slot that goes where many others before it have gone-a competent imitation of the charm of an adventure in the Wild West, rather than boldly striking some new territories. Pragmatic has drawn copiously from NetEnt’s Dead or Alive 2, and although imitation is said to be the sincerest form of flattery, the comparisons are unavoidable. Wild West Gold and its cheery atmosphere offer lighter territory for those who find DoA2 too intense. Yet it is not fresh enough to be anything special for its category.

Although the sticky Wilds of Free Spins are clearly the highlight of this game, generating excitement and massive payout opportunities, too often the base game is a grind even for the most committed players. If you can ride out the grind, the slot has its high highs when the bonus round finally hits.

In summary, Wild West Gold is a good slot for the fans of Western-themed slots and for those who like playing slots with high volatility. However, its not-so-rich features and unoriginality make it rather a side player than a real star among all the other slots in the online casino. For those seeking something fresh and new for an adventure in the Wild West from Pragmatic Play, great Rhino Megaways seems like a more appealing option-they promise extremely big win potential and some innovative mechanics.